Fiction Addict

Genre: Young Adult, Adventure, Thriller, Sci-Fi

Publisher: Scholastic

Publication Date: October 2008

Reviewed by Jake Chism

In the future North America has vanished and a new nation called Panem has risen. Twelve districts are ruled by the Capitol, a tyrant ruling council that uses a yearly competition to keep order among its despondent citizens. Every year one boy and one girl from each district are chosen to compete in the Hunger Games where they must fight to the death. The location is always different, and every year the nation watches with bated breath to see who will be the last one standing.

In District 12, Katniss Everdeen looks on in horror as her younger sister is chosen to compete in this year’s games. Before she knows it she finds herself volunteering in her sister’s place. Also chosen is the mysterious baker’s son, Peeta, who Katniss has always known from a distance. As the competition nears Katniss and Peeta grow closer making the imminent battle for survival all the more complicated. This year Katniss and Peeta will capture the hearts of a hopeless nation as they turn the tables on The Hunger Games and the evil Capitol that controls them.

I am always on the lookout for that one story. You know what I mean. The one that gets in your head and won’t go away. The kind of book you want to put in everyone’s hands.  A story that has the power to completely mesmerize and capture your imagination. The Hunger Games has done all of that for me and more.

Collins hooks us from line one with the engaging first person narrative of Katniss Everdeen. Through her eyes we learn about this world in the distant future and the turmoil within. This is the kind of character that most novelists only dream of creating. Every turn of the page reveals just a little more about what drives her unquenchable spirit. Katniss may be low on the social ladder, but her compassion and fight for justice lend a majestic quality to this lowly peasant.

If Katniss herself doesn’t hook you, no doubt the relentless pacing will. Once the Games begin it is almost impossible to put this story down. Collins perfectly balances action, suspense, and violence throughout the second half of this story. As I was reading I felt like I, too, was watching these Games unfold along with the citizens of Panem and several times I wanted to stand and cheer for Katniss and Peeta and their heroic actions. In the end we are given the perfect amount of closure with a promise of more to come.

The Hunger Games might just be the best novel I’ve read this year and I am simply blown away by the storytelling prowess of Suzanne Collins. The sequel, Catching Fire, is due out soon and if early reviews are any indication, round two is even better. I can’t wait to disappear once more into this fascinating world that has captured my imagination in a way I never anticipated.